Discipleship

Introduction

I love this picture on this slide. During this time of the year, wildflowers can be seen throughout our area. Somehow, seeds were cast by our Lord and we see many varieties of wildflowers field after field. As they grow and mature, they produce seeds that will produce more wildflowers. It is a beautiful circle of life. God’s design is for life to be reproduced. The same is true for our spiritual lives. God desires for us to be His disciples that reproduce and make other disciples. For the church to thrive, discipleship must exist and exist well. Anytime we are casting a vision that will glorify God, part of the vision should include discipleship.

I shared this definition in our newsletter this week.

"Discipleship is the task of training believers to become mature followers of Christ, growing in their knowledge of, love for, and obedience to the Lord." It should always be Biblically based.

A beautiful example found is Acts 11:19-26

Acts 11:19–26 NIV84

19 Now those who had been scattered by the persecution in connection with Stephen traveled as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus and Antioch, telling the message only to Jews. 20 Some of them, however, men from Cyprus and Cyrene, went to Antioch and began to speak to Greeks also, telling them the good news about the Lord Jesus. 21 The Lord’s hand was with them, and a great number of people believed and turned to the Lord. 22 News of this reached the ears of the church at Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas to Antioch. 23 When he arrived and saw the evidence of the grace of God, he was glad and encouraged them all to remain true to the Lord with all their hearts. 24 He was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and faith, and a great number of people were brought to the Lord. 25 Then Barnabas went to Tarsus to look for Saul, 26 and when he found him, he brought him to Antioch. So for a whole year Barnabas and Saul met with the church and taught great numbers of people. The disciples were called Christians first at Antioch.

Today we will look at the reasons for discipleship, the requirements for discipleship, the relationships from discipleship, and the results of discipleship.

The Reasons for Discipleship (vs. 19-20)

This passage exists because of the command of our Lord. The apostles and disciples were commanded by Jesus to go out and make disciples. You remember the Great Commission:

Matthew 28:19–20 NIV84

19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

When Christ calls us to follow Him, He commands us to make disciples. Did you know there is no separation? We called to continue the work of the cross. Luke 9:23-24

Luke 9:23–24 NIV84

23 Then he said to them all: “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. 24 For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will save it.

Don’t be misled. What Jesus did on the cross never has to be done again. He took all of the world’s sin and died as the atonement for all. Yet, our denying self and taking up the cross is not for us to be punished for sin, but rather to make know that which Jesus has done for us. The apostles were traveling as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus, and Antioch because one man boldly took up a stand to continue the work of the cross. After Stephen testified about the cross of Jesus, he was stoned to death. We find this is Acts 7 and I encourage you to read that passage and see his boldness. Many were there watching this heroic effort. Notice what they did:

Acts 8:1–4 NIV84

1 And Saul was there, giving approval to his death. On that day a great persecution broke out against the church at Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria. 2 Godly men buried Stephen and mourned deeply for him. 3 But Saul began to destroy the church. Going from house to house, he dragged off men and women and put them in prison. 4 Those who had been scattered preached the word wherever they went.

Sometimes the worst thing that happens leads to the most exhilarating works of God! Instead of running and hiding, being fearful of being persecuted, these men went all over and preached the word of God. By the way, these were not ordained, seminary trained men. They were laymen just you many of you. They used this event as a springboard to intentionally share their faith and train up others in the ways of the Lord. Those that fled from persecution did not flee from their work. Their field got even bigger! “The enemies designed to scatter and lose them, Christ designed to scatter and use them!” Matthew Henry

The were given the capacity to grow both spiritually and in number. I am reminded that God dramatically delivers His people.

Psalm 142:1–7 NIV84

1 I cry aloud to the Lord; I lift up my voice to the Lord for mercy. 2 I pour out my complaint before him; before him I tell my trouble. 3 When my spirit grows faint within me, it is you who know my way. In the path where I walk men have hidden a snare for me. 4 Look to my right and see; no one is concerned for me. I have no refuge; no one cares for my life. 5 I cry to you, O Lord; I say, “You are my refuge, my portion in the land of the living.” 6 Listen to my cry, for I am in desperate need; rescue me from those who pursue me, for they are too strong for me. 7 Set me free from my prison, that I may praise your name. Then the righteous will gather about me because of your goodness to me.

Notice what is required for discipleship.

The Requirements for Discipleship (vs. 21-24)

First and foremost, to be a disciple, the hand of the Lord must be on you. Verse 21 says, “The hand of the Lord was with them...”

Sometimes we try to do things on our own. In the times I have tried to make it happen on my own I have found that it did not go too well. I am reminded of the truth Jesus spoke. John 15:5

John 15:5 NIV84

5 “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.

Have you ever noticed in scripture when the hand of the Lord was with His people great things took place in the worst scenarios? If you want to be a disciple of Christ, you must have the hand of the Lord on you and all that you are doing. How do you get the Hand of the Lord on you? First and foremost, you enter into a relationship with Him and cultivate that relationship in a way that you know that you know that His hand is on you and guiding you. These men who had traveled far and preached the word of God were close to their Lord. I would imagine that closeness consisted of studying the scriptures and spending time in prayer. Today we call that a quiet time or a devotional time. Are you regularly and daily spending time in God’s word and in prayer? You cannot be a disciple unless that is the case! Apart from Him, you can do nothing!

Not only did these folks have the hand of the Lord, they had the help of the Holy Spirit. We see the example of Barnabas who became known as the Son of Encouragement. What a nickname! Oh that we all could be known as children of encouragement! Verse 24 tells us that one of the characteristics of Barnabas was indeed that he was a man full of the Holy Spirit. The evidence that he was full of the Holy Spirit was seen in the utilization of gifts that were given by the Holy Spirit. Each one of us are given gifts of the Holy Spirit. It is very important that you understand what gifts you have been given then us those gifts for the glory of God! In the past we have pointed you to several spiritual gifts inventories that you can use and help you understand that even better. A list of spiritual gifts can be found in 1 Corinthians 12.

Barnabas knew that one of his spiritual gifts was leading others to the Lord and encouraging them after they came to know the Lord. We seen that he personally invested in a convert named Saul. This was the same person we read about earlier in Acts 8:4 that was at Stephen’s stoning and giving approval that to happen. This was the same Saul that persecuted Christians and caused this scattering to take place. Scholars believe that Saul after his conversion fled to his home of Tarsus to flee his own persecution. Some ten years later after his conversion, Barnabas travels a long way to look for Saul and bring him back to Antioch. Barnabas invested his life into Saul’s life.

What an example of a hard-core faith! A hard-core faith is when you are sold out to the Lordship of Jesus Christ. You believe it when He says He is with you. You trust Him when He says to go. You act on His commands and live out His teachings. It is the true definition of practicing what you believe to be true!

Hebrews 11:1 NIV84

1 Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.

Barnabas brought in Saul, whose name later was changed to Paul, to minister alongside with him. Barnabas brought in Paul without any jealousy whatsoever that Paul would make a larger impact. Barnabas was the first to take the converted persecutor of the church and show him as a disciple! What an investment! Do you have a Barnabas that invested in your life? Do you have a Barnabas-like investment in the lives of others?

Look what happens when you invest your life and develop relationships through discipleship.

The Relationships from Discipleship (vs. 25-26)

The relationships from discipleship produces authenticity. I love this. We can be real with those we practice discipleship. So often in life we are not real with each other. A friend see us and asks, “How are you doing?” We will answer: “I am fine.” The truth of the matter is that our lives could be in shambles, but we refuse to be real. Why is that? Maybe it is embarassment or shame. The example of Barnabas is to encourage. Can you imagine the conversation that Barnabas and Paul had? “Hey you no good persecutor! Come with me and let me teach you a few things and maybe you will turn out to be something better!” No, I think it was more like, “Wow Paul, God sure does have a plan for you! Come with to Antioch and let’s share the Good News with the Greeks and Gentiles!”

The authenticity leads to accountability which in turn leads to action. Antioch by the way was the third largest city in the Roman Empire. It was a vile city that was situated on the Orontes River. it was so bad that one Roman writer said, “The sewage of the Syrian Orontes has for long been discharged into the Tiber.” In other words, Antioch was so corrupt that its corruption influenced Rome, some 1300 miles away! Do you think God knew what He was doing putting Paul and Barnabas together?

Let’s look at the results of discipleship

The Results of Discipleship

The first result that is evident to me is that discipleship impacts your life. When you are practicing the concepts of discipleship that help you mature in the Lord and strengthen your love for the Lord and encourages you to be obedient to His commands, your life will be significantly impacted! Guess what else will happen? You will impact your church! In our text, it says “great numbers of people were taught.” An impacted church will impact its community. Families are changed. Schools are changed. When communities are changed, the world is changed! Do you realize the opportunity that God has given us? This church is placed across the street from a major university with over 20000 students that are coming back in the next 2 weeks. They are coming from literally all over the world. How can you invest in one life? How can you be a Barnabas to someone?

“When the saints are grounded in the Word, they will have a strong witness to the lost, ant there will be a balance in the church between edification and evangelism, worship and witness, teaching and witnessing.” Warren Wiersbe

All you have to do is what Barnabas did in verse 23:

Acts 11:23 NIV84

23 When he arrived and saw the evidence of the grace of God, he was glad and encouraged them all to remain true to the Lord with all their hearts.

Be encouraged to remain true to the Lord with all your heart.

Allow the Lord to dwell in your so much, that it overflows into every person that comes to know you!